Object structure and saccade planning

When orienting to a newly appearing display, evidence shows that two saccadic eye movements are often prepared together. By looking the relation between the landing positions of the first and the second saccade, we examine the frame of reference used for the preparation of the second saccade aiming for a new object or exploring within the same object. We demonstrate that the action to be performed on the object affects the coding of the second saccade. A second saccade directed to a new object is coded to aim for a target position on it and is adjusted to the landing position of the first saccade, whereas a second saccade within the same object is coded as a fixed motor vector applied irrespective of the initial landing position on the object. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.